Rear View Mirror: 1984 Volkswagen GTI

Hare Tonic

1984 Volkswagen GTI

The début of the new, seventh generation GTI brings to mind earlier generations of VW’s venerable, hot hatch. A recent launch event for the 2015 edition of the Golf-based GTI offered the opportunity to see and drive examples from the preceding six generations of GTI’s. Most interesting to me was the Mark I representative – a 1984 Rabbit GTI.

Previewed at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1975, Volkswagen’s first wave of performance-minded GTI hatchbacks was unleashed on the European market in 1976.

The U.S. had to wait for its first look at a GTI until 1983. Here, Golf was known as Rabbit, and in the early 1980’s, the GTI version was seen as a salve to slumping, stateside sales for VW. Beyond the name change, there were other differences between the Euro and American versions; some visible, some not. U.S. GTI’s had rectangular headlights, and were fitted with beefier bumpers, to comply with federal safety standards. European versions were powered by a 106 horsepower,1.6 litre four cylinder engine. American models ran a 1.8 L motor instead. The U.S. spec, inline four had an iron block, aluminum head and Bosch fuel injection. It generated 90 horsepower @ 5,500 rpm, and 100 lb. ft. of torque @ 3,000 rpm. Though down on h.p. compared to its continental cousin, the American version offered a different torque curve, with higher midrange levels. Both engines were linked to a close-ratio, five speed manual transmission. Following sports car tradition, there was no automatic option.

The Uber Rabbit could top out above 100 mph, and it took about 10 seconds to hit 60 from a standstill. While that sixty time sounds glacial to today’s ears, in the early 80’s we were still in the Dark Ages for performance cars. GTI was quick enough for its time and, more importantly, well balanced. The chassis boasted an independent, sport suspension with front and rear stabilizers. Add ventilated, front disc brakes, rack and pinion steering and a 2,100 lb. curb weight and collectively, it made for an agile little hatchback. Stingy too, with EPA estimated mileage of 26 mpg’s city/36 highway.

In 1984, the first Apple Macintosh went on sale, as well as the first Sony CD player. Ghostbusters and Amadeus were at the movies, Cheers and Hill Street Blues were on TV. A gallon of gas cost $1.10, and a new Corvette stickered for $23,392. In season two for the GTI Mark I, the MSRP was $8,350. Driving an ’84 GTI at VW’s event recently was a chance to revisit those days, with the immediate, throwback cue of a cassette deck in the dash, as you slide into the crushed velour seats. The GTI interior departed from the Rabbit’s in several respects. Bolstered, sport buckets, for one, and faux aluminum trim replaced faux wood trim. The four spoke steering wheel was borrowed from big brother Scirocco, and the dimpled golf ball shift knob was a reminder of Rabbit’s European twin. A trio of auxiliary gauges perch on the edge of the center console, and overhead, an optional, (crank, metal) sunroof.

On the road, you see and feel the bones of the breed that evolved from them. The pieces are all here: fine, flat handling, stout brakes and slop-free steering; an engine that’s responsive (for the day), and a shifter that was on the shortlist of the best of its era. The blatty tone of the aftermarket exhaust system in this example is a reminder once again that swapping mufflers on a four cylinder car rarely results in sonic improvement.

GTI’s first generation here in the states was short, but productive. Thirty thousand of the Rabbit-based, hot hatches were built in 1983-84, all assembled at the company’s Pennsylvania plant. The car immediately caught on with enthusiast drivers, and the automotive press took note. Mark I editions were named to Car & Driver’s 10 Best list in both 1983 and 1984. It also created the template for future GTI generations: fast, frugal, functional and fairly affordable.